So, when I made the healthy, homemade fish sticks for my last post, my meat-and-potatoes-loving husband was way more excited about the side dish: baked french fries.
He told me he showed my blog to a few of his friends and they were all asking for the recipe for those fries (seen in my last post, as a ‘supporting role’ in my fish stick photos).
So I decided I should do a separate post for the fries.
4 reasons why I make this side dish all the time:
1) it’s really easy
2) it requires only four main ingredients, and they’re all things I almost always have on hand
3) it satisfies any fast-food french fry craving without all the saturated fat, calories, and guilt
4) these fries are crispy, full of flavor, and absolutely delicious!
Here’s everything you’ll need – so simple!
Preheat the oven to 550 degrees F.
Then begin by slicing the potatoes.
First, cut them in half lengthwise.
Place the first half flat-side-down on the cutting board for stability.
Holding your knife horizontally, cut through the half lengthwise again.
Then cut quarter-inch-thick slices.
Toss them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Season well with salt and pepper.
Mince some garlic and add that.
Add some Herbes de Provence.
If you don’t already have Herbes de Provence, it’s a wonderful mixture of dried herbs to add to your pantry. It normally has dried rosemary, thyme, marjoram, savory, and fennel. It tastes amazing with chicken, pork, and roasted or grilled veggies.
Once you have it, you’ll find a million uses for it.
And it’s incredibly healthy. These dried herbs have tons of antiaging and disease-preventing antioxidants, tons of flavor, and no fat and (hardly any) calories.
Dried herbs like Herbes de Provence are super-concentrated with antioxidants. Some, like rosemary and thyme, have as many antioxidants as a small serving of blueberries or sweet potatoes!
Next, add some extra virgin olive oil, another healthy choice for your potatoes.
Extra virgin olive oil is full of unsaturated fats, and it’s been proven to help prevent heart disease and raise ‘good’ cholesterol levels.
Olive oil helps your potatoes turn nice and crispy and golden in the oven too.
Mix everything together with your hands until all the fries are well-coated with oil and seasoning.
Arrange the fries so they all lie flat on the baking sheet.
Bake them and then flip them over with a spatula or tongs.
Put them back in the oven for a few minutes more to make sure both sides are nice and golden.
When you remove them from the oven, immediately transfer them to a serving platter with a spatula or tongs.
Then grate some fresh parmesan all over the top.
The heat from the fries will melt the parmesan ever so slightly. Yum!
This is one unbelievably tasty dish.
The fries are really crispy and crunchy outside, with scrumptious, soft baked potato on the inside. So flavorful!
And the fresh, lightly melted parmesan takes things over the top!
These are so, so good, you’ll never feel the need to make a fast food pit-stop again!
Here is the complete printable recipe:
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
- 2 large russet potatoes
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon Herbes de Provence
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Preheat the oven to 550 degrees F.
- Cut the potatoes in half, lengthwise, then cut into equally-sized, quarter-inch-thick slices.
- Place potatoes on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Season well with salt and pepper. Add garlic, Herbes de Provence, and olive oil.
- Mix with hands until all fries are well-coated with oil and seasoning. Arrange potatoes on baking sheet so they all lie flat.
- Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes.
- Using tongs or a spatula, flip fries and then place back in the oven for about 5 minutes more.
- Transfer to a serving platter and grate fresh parmesan over the fries while they are still hot from the oven. Serve.
LOVE! Almost exactly the way I’ve been making my fries except I peel the potatoes first and you have herbs. Mine “recipe” was completely through intuition though, and usually baked at 400F haha so I will try baking them at a higher temperature so it won’t take as long! Plus your presentation is definitely muchos fancier
My* “recipe”, not mine. I hate making spelling/grammar mistakes in comments because I can never correct them
Yes, I really like to move things along by not peeling and cooking at a high temp! The dried herbs really add something.
Hey lady, this is a great french fry recipe! It reminds me of these truffle fries I had once in Healdsburg, CA. This bar and grill restaurant fries up their french fries in truffle oil and sprinkles parmesan on top….the flavor is out of this world. Your recipe looks like a great alternative to deep-fried potatoes…still full of flavor and cheesy goodness. Great how-to and thanks for an awesome recipe!
Love, love truffle fries – they definitely inspired this recipe
Beautiful! Can’t wait to test this out.
Mmmmmmm, these look absolutely wonderful. I’m going to have to put together some herbs de provence. I have a blend from my garden of parsley, sweet basil, Greek oregano and German thyme. It’s a wonderful blend, but I need some rosemary! Can’t wait to try these!
Oh, your fresh herbs sound wonderful – I really have to start a garden this summer!
French fries are the reason I go for fast food – having this recipe will save me so many calories! These look just like some fries at a restaurant here in town – so, so good.
Me too – the only fast food item I really like are the fries!
Baked fries is really great thing
You can have them without guilt (unless you are having half kilo 
). I’m sure with parmesan they are even yummier!
Yes, just a little parmesan goes a long way – so tasty!
I learned from one of Australia’s top chefs to get the best chips – is to blanch them the chips off quickly in salted water for about 10 min. Store between a tea towels in fridge overnight and then fry them in peanut oil. And they come out beautiful – your way I will try during the coming week. Will let you know about the outcome. Love the combination parmesan and potatoes.
You’re reminding me to get another block of parmigiano reggiano. I got all the things that I need except your secret ingredient (Herbes de Provence)..i might just sub it with my other dried herbs.
I’ve never baked fries before..correct me if i’m wrong, baked fries should be crispier than the deep fried ones, right?
Well, I don’t think baked fries are necessarily crispier – - the benefit to baking them is a lighter, fresher flavor. And of course it’s so much healthier! Enjoy
Oh yumm, fries to go with your fabulous fish! Thanks for the inspiration and recipes.
So glad you’re enjoying the recipes – thanks for reading!
These fries look so good! I couldn’t even tell you when I last ate a french fry…maybe it’s time to break my fast with these
.
These look amazing! Fries are my favorite food of all time. Major drool factor.
One of my top favorites too – so addictive!
Baked fries to fulfill my french fry cravings that are also healthy? Yes, please! This looks incredibly easy, and I love that it requires so little ingredients. I actually have all of them on hand so I could totally make them right now, at 10:25PM…
Too funny – - enjoy!
I particular like the fact that the potatoes still have the skins on and are sprinkled with herbs. I use Herbes de Provence quite a lot but have never tried it this way so thanks for another fantastic recipe!
Great photos…those baked fries are really talking to me.
Can’t wait to try these. Much healthier and I ‘ll bet a whole lot better tasting than McDonalds.
Joy
Yum – I love Parmesan on my fries and the addition of the herbs make them evern extra special!
This is a fantastic recipe and I’ll be trying it out tonight! My 13-year old would love it if I served poutine (Canadian concoction with fries, cheese curds and gravy!), but would love this every bit as much as I expect, and there is no comparison in terms of healthfulness. Thanks for providing a winner.
Ohhh.. i love potatoes. Theye look great!
Me too! And thank you
I did not have the herbs de provence nor the grated parmesan, so I did a spicier alternative. Chili powder, ground red pepper, and shredded pepper jack cheese. The husband loves them this way… thanks again for the recipe!
Yum, your version sounds so tasty! Thanks so much for letting me know how they turned out for you!
These look delicious also! Your blog is making me hungry! =]